Some Political Musings on the Non-engaged Democratic Party

Every once in awhile here at Celestial Lands, I offer some thoughts on politics. Nothing gets me in “trouble” here more than when I offer thoughts on politics. I’m probably on even less firm ground with this one than others, because it is not even really a thought, just a feeling and a wonder.
I have [...]

Ware Lecture Day, My Accessioning, and Going to Arizona in 2012: GA 2010 Day 4

My discomfort with the framing of the debate around boycotting Arizona, my accessionnig as a Military Chaplain, and the Ware Lecture by Winona LaDuke

Inoculation Through Creating Common Wisdom Narratives

I am fascinated with how we human beings create narratives or stories, and then derive our meanings from them. In politics, this manifests in several different ways, one of the most obvious being how a “narrative” is created by any successful candidacy for high political office (Obama the Reformer, McCain the Mavrick, Biden the Good [...]

The Political Right and the Road to Damascus

I have spoken before about what I believe is happening on the far right of American politics today, and from the public and private responses I know it is one of the more controversial topics I engage here at Celestial Lands. I speak as someone who traveled in those far-right circles for many years. Had [...]

Tofu Causes Dementia!

I don’t like tofu. I’ve tried to eat it and it actually makes me gag. When I was dating, I suffered through several tofu laden meals for a particular liberal-leaning young woman I was attempting to woo… until I realized that if it worked out I would have to eat tofu for the rest of [...]

In Each Ending there is a Beginning

We have closed another year here at Celestial Lands, and I want to thank all of those who read and send me comments, both in public through the blog and in private through my email. I keep this website because it is important to me… it is a place for my spiritual practice of writing; [...]

The Dangers of a Culture of the Infamous and Stupidly Famous

If you want to become a “legend” in our current culture, there are several paths that one can follow. You can create a Youtube video of yourself doing something inherently stupid. You can go on a reality television show where you will be challenged to do stupid things on primetime, like eat scorpions or build [...]

Policy or Vision as the Mission of the Church?

Recently, in private conversation, on this blog, and among radio hosts I listen to, there has been conversation about why the liberal churches do not get involved in certain national policy issues… and each time I hear that call I cringe. Though I have friends in several of our UUA Advocacy Offices and social justice [...]

Why Janeane Garofalo is Dangerously Wrong

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Any time I hear someone begin to refer to whole groups of individuals as “these people” or “those people”, my brain immediately begins to shout that there is some kind of dangerous prejudice being promoted. I found it amazingly ironic that when Janeane Garofalo launched into her prejudiced diatribe last night in a segment [...]

The Political Assumptions of Progressivism

I have found that most of the people who identify as some kind of religious “progressive” have done at least some basic work around the worldview and assumptions that they are implying by linking their religious faith so clearly with the concept of progress. While it is not the kind of faith I could follow, [...]